Operating and controlling mechanism tor player-pianos



P. .l. MEAHL.

OPERATING AND CONTROLLING MECHANISM FOR PLAYER PIANOS. APPLICATION FILED Aumafl n.

1,312,194, Patented Aug. 5,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I A TTORNE) m5 COLUMBIA PLANOGRAFH ccx. WASHINGTON, D. c

P. J. MEAHL.

OPERATING AND CONTROLLING MECHANISM FOR PLAYER PIANOS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.13,1917.

1,312,194. Patented Aug. 5,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

INVENTOI? & law/a 0 rw A TTOR/VE Y Tm: COLUMBIA PLAxrmn/wu cw, WASHINGTON, n. c

PHILIP J. MEAHL, or SUMMIT, NEW JERSEY.

OPERATING CONTROLLING MEQHANISllI FOR PLAYER-PIAN SQ Specification of Letters Patent. I I Pat ented Aug, 5,, 1919;

Application filed August 13, 1917. Serial No. 185,880.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, PHILIP J MEArIL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Summit, in the county of Union and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Operating and Controlling Mechanism for Player-Pianos, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. This invention relates to automatic musical instruments, and with respect to its more specific features, to improvements in pneumatic player pianos.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a simplified and improved mech anism for controlling the action of the' striking pneumatics in instruments of the character mentioned. A further object is to provide an improved construction and arrangement of parts for the purpose mentioned, which are reliable in operation and capable of economical manufacture and assembly.

Other objects and advantages willbe in part noted hereinafter in connection with the description of the accompanying drawings which illustrate a typical embodiment of the invention, and in which Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view through a set of pneumati'cs and control devices therefor;

Fig. 2 is a plan view; and i v n Fig. 3 is a fragmentary front elevation thereof. 7 o I The invention is particularly applicable to a player piano in which a plurality of pneumatics are associated as a striking unit for each key. In the drawings, each unit set of pneumatics comprises a primary striking bellows 1, an oppositely acting restoring bellows 2 having a common stationary board 8, and a secondary striking bellows 4, all of which utilize a common movable leaf 5 so mounted as to insure collapsed or expanded condition of the bellows 1 and 4 while bellows 2 is in the opposite condition. The pneumatics may conveniently be. arranged in upper and lower horiz'ontalseries in staggered relation. The construction and operation of the units are alike, so that a description of one will be sufficient. I

The primary striking bellows 1 may be provided with an extension 6' on its movable leaf in a position to actuate a piano abstract or striker or other suitablepart 7 Each set of pneumatics is preferably associated with a valve case 8 having a suction chamber 9 in communication with a suitable pressurereducing source and: located between the neumatics 1, 2 and the conventional tracker ar, over which the note sheet passes during play; In the present instance the valve case also contains a chamber 10 adapted for communication at will, through a manual control, with the pressure-reducing source and arranged to operate the pneumatic 4, as will be described. a The bellows 1 is connected by passage 11 either with the atmos phere through' po'rt 12, or with suction chamber 9 through inner port 13, the ports mentioned being controlled by a valve 14. The bellows 2 is also adapted for communication with the atmosphere through channel 15, port 16 and port17 on one side, or with vacuum chamber 9 through port 18 on the other side. 'The ports 16 and 18 are controlled by a double valve 19 having a stem 20 and arranged so that the ports are alternately opened and closed. Valves 19 and 14 are in turn controlled by valve 21, which normally seals vacuum chamber 9 from an air duct 22 leading to a predetermined aperture in the tracker bar 23.

.With the mechanism thus far described and in the condition shown in Fig. 1, travel of the music sheet to register a perforation thereof witha tracker bar aperture control duct 22 admits atmospheric pressure to the latter and thereby raises valve 21 which in turn elevates valve 19' and valve 14. Upward movement of the last-mentioned valve seals striking pneumatic 1 from, the atmosphere through port 12 and brings it' into communication with the vacuum chamber 9, causing the pneumatic to immediately. 001- lapse. At the same time valve 19 seals" port mati'c 2 brought into communication with the suction chamber, whereby pneumatic 2 collapses and pneumatic 1 expands".

Auxiliary pneumatic 4 is adapted for communication, through air passage 25, either with the atmosphere through port 26,

or with vacuum chamber 10 through port 27.

The two ports mentioned are controlled by valve 28 having its stem resting on diaphragm 29, which seals the vacuum chamber mentioned from passage 15. Chamber 10 is adapted to be connnected through passage 30 and conduit 31 with a suitable control box by which the chamber may be placed in communication with a suitable pressure reducing source. In practice, a plurality of sets of the chambers 10 are controlled through a single manual valve I whereby octaves or other predetermined key ranges maybe, sepa rately governed.

In the normal operation of the instrument auxiliary pneumatics 4 are idle; that is they are in communication with the atmosphere through'port 26 both during collapse and expansion. When, however, 'it is desired to emphasize particular notes, the corresponding pneumatics 4 are rendered active to cooperate with the complementary pneumatics 1, and this result is accomplished by connecting chamber 10 with its pressure-reducing source. Thereafter, upon registration of note sheet aperture with the tracker bar aperture leading to duct 22, in addition to the already described operation of pneumatics 1 and 2, diaphragm 29 is raised, due to the difference in pressure on its opposite sides, and thereby valve 28 is elevated to seal atmosphere port 26 and open port 27, thereby bringing pneumatic 4 into communication with suction chamber 10 and entailing the joint striking collapse of pneumatics 1 and 4 with a resultant stronger blow. :The sue: ceeding expansion of the latter is effected due to the restoration of equilibrium in pressure on opposite sides of diaphragm 29 and the consequent fall of the latter with a fall of valve 28.

There is further provided improved means whereby the expansion of pneumatic 2 may be. controlled at will manually or automatically to govern its resistance to the striking collapse of pneumatic 1 or of pneumatics 1 and 4 jointly. As shown, the means mentioned includes one or more slides 32, positioned above the valve cases 8 and having ports 33 in normal registry with atmosphere ports 17. The slide 32 may extend across the entire series of valve cases or it may be divided into independently operable sections 32, 32, etc. to control predetermined key ranges, as desired. Two slides are represented as positioned within guide flanges-34 and controlled at one end through a yoke 35 pivoted to the end of a lever 36,.in turn medially fulcrumed and having its opposite end connected by link 37 to a suitable auto- 'ports33 and 17 and thereby serves to restrict, as desired, air passage through the ports and consequently air admlsslon to pneumatic 2 in expanding.

WVhen it is desired, for example, to lessen the striking force of pneumatic 1, it may be accomplished by moving slide 32 to decrease the area of the opening through ports 33 and 17 and thereby lower the rate of admission of air to pneumatic 2 below the normal rate of air emission from pneumatic 1 and,'as the parts consequently act in opposition, the striking force of pneumatic 1 decreases. The same result may be accomplished also during the active cooperation of pneumatics 1 and 4. In this case pneumatic 2 opposes both ofthb other striking bellows. Consequently, by control of pneumatic 1 alone or pneumatics 1 and 4 jointly through wide gradation of movement of slide 32, the final sound-producing energy of the pneumatic system may be varied through an extremely wide range. i

.Certain structural advantages and superiorities of the mechanism described will also be apparent. For example, the described association of the three pneumatics for energizing control through a single tracker bar duct 22 enables the omission of any bleed-hole or bypass between air passage-15 and vacuum chamber 10, and also eliminates the necessity of providing a special passage between the tracker bar and the control valves of pneumatic 4. Further, also, the positionand arrangement of the one or more slides 32 above the valve cases renders the assembly convenient and economical and also minimizes the possibility of air leaks.

The general association of the improvements described in a player piano, as well as certain modifications thereof without de parture from the scope'of the invention, will be clearly apparent to those skilled in the art. i As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this inven tion could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention, which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a player piano, in combination, a pair of cooperable striking pneumatics, a restoring pneumatic, a common suction chamber for one of said striking pneumatics and said restoring pneumatic, a separate suction chamber for the other striking pneumatic, and a pressure responsive diaphragm in communication on one side With said separate suction chamber and on the other side with said restoring pneumatic whereby said diaphragm is affected in closing by the opposed sub-atmospheric pressures of said suction chambers.

2. In a player piano, in combination, a pair of oppositely acting pneumatics, controlling mechanism therefor including a valve case having a port in communication with the atmosphere, and a sliding member Without said case having an aperture movable to vary the free area of said port.

3. In a player piano, in combination, a striking pneumatic, a restoring pneumatic associated therewith, a valve case, a valve mechanism therein operable to alternately eflect collapse ofsaid pneumatics, and means including a reciprocable member mounted without said case to control the expansion of one of said pneumatics during the collapse of the other.

4. In a player piano, in combination, a primary striking pneumatic, a secondary striking pneumatic, a'restoring pneumatic, a

valve case including a common suction chamber for one of said striking pneumatic and said restoring pneumatic, a separate suction chamber for the other of said striking pneumatics, and means between said restoring pneumatic and said other striking pneumatic to initiate the action of the latter.

5. In a player piano, in combination, a

striking pneumatic, a restoring pneumatic, separate suction chambers for said pneumatics, separate atmosphere ports for said pneumatics, and means including said port of said restoring pneumatic to initiate the action of said striking pneumatic. 6. In a player piano, in combination, a pair of coperable striking pneumatics, a restoring pneumatic, an atmosphere port for said restoring pneumatic, and means including said port to initiate the action of one of said striking pneumatics.

7. In a player piano, in combination, a striking pneumatic, a restoring pneumatic, separate suction chambers for said pneumatics, separate atmosphere ports for said pneumatics, and means subject on one side to atmospheric pressure through said port of said restoring pneumatic and on the other side to the suction chamber of said striking pneumatic to control the latter.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

PHILIP J. MEAHL.

Witnesses:

J. THOMSON, C. J. KULBERG.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). G. 

